Reel Deal: 'Harry Potter' gets dark

Robert McCune

Friday

Nov 26, 2010 at 12:01 AMNov 26, 2010 at 12:45 AM

The behemoth that is the Harry Potter franchise rolls into the first half of the final chapter with a darker, colder edge than we’ve seen in any of the past films. Gone are the magic and merriment of Hogwarts and even the pretense that this is in any way a film for the younger set.

Beloved books pop off the page in this week’s Reel Deal column.

First up, guest reviewer Seth Breedlove has his take on the latest movie adaptation of author J.K. Rowling’s “Harry Potter” book series. On DVD, Beverly Cleary’s “Ramona” runs wild in her first feature film. And coming soon to theaters are a modern “Gulliver’s Travels,” starring Jack Black, a returning classic, “Winnie the Pooh.”

Check out our guest reviewer’s comic book and pop culture podcast, “Seth vs. the Flying Saucers,” available for free download on iTunes.

Take it away, Seth.

"Deathly Hallows"

The behemoth that is the Harry Potter franchise rolls into the first half of the final chapter with a darker, colder edge than we’ve seen in any of the past films. Gone are the magic and merriment of Hogwarts and even the pretense that this is in any way a film for the younger set. These things have been replaced with a sense of dread that permeates the whole film. “Deathly Hallows” has been split into two halves in an effort to let the story breathe. It’s debatable, at a time when your average blockbuster clocks in at over 120 minutes, whether or not this was a necessity or a means of extracting more money from the series’ rabid fan base.

As the movie begins, darkness has prevailed and Voldemort’s evil forces have already begun to usurp the remaining good left in the world. There are constant allegories to Nazi Germany, and this is never more obvious than when Harry, Ron and Hermione sneak into the Ministry of Magic, where they find constant allusions to propaganda and imagery that evoke elements of the Third Reich.

Obviously, a film with a message that directly relates to a historical act of near genocide isn’t exactly for children. And therein lies one of my biggest problems with “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” –– the magic is gone. Mind you, I’m not talking about spells and flying broomsticks and potions. No, the magic I refer to is the kind that the first three films in the series were filled with. Things like Harry’s first ride on his broomstick or the wonder of Hogwarts covered in snow. There is no sense of wonder in this film, just unending dread.

Now, obviously, this is the nature of the story, and as the first act in a two-act finale that ends in a cliffhanger, the stakes were going to be raised. Characters would die and things would be bleak. It’s hard to hold the gloom of the movie against it because it is intentional, but, nonetheless, it makes the movie less of an adventure and more of an endurance challenge.

I’m reminded of a film in a franchise that laid the groundwork for sequels that raise the stakes over their predecessors and did so while maintaining a sense of magic: “The Empire Strikes Back.” In that film, the forces of evil were gaining the upper hand constantly throughout the course of the story and, yet, there were still moments of pure beauty and, again, movie magic. “Deathly Hallows” doesn’t have any of those magical moments.

The other glaring fault of the film is that director David Yates still doesn’t seem to have any idea how to frame, edit or choreograph an action sequence. This has been a problem since he took over the series. Here, the chase scenes, which are numerous, are over before you even realize they’ve begun, and often times leave one feeling disoriented rather than thrilled. The film trucks through any scene that could otherwise serve to heighten the audience’s tension, with the exception of one brilliantly filmed bit of action toward the end.

Having said all that, it’s still a beautiful film. The production design finds an aesthetic and sticks to it, with a visual palette that is distinctly it’s own. It’s dark, yes, but never boring to look at. The sets are gorgeous, particularly when our lead characters descend into the Ministry of Magic, and even scenes set in endless forest or rocky hillsides manage to be visually arresting. Not since Alfonso Cuaron’s “Prisoner of Azkaban” has a Harry Potter film had such a singular look.

Though the movie is dark, it doesn’t completely ignore the humorous aspects of the world in which the story takes place. A scene where Harry and Ron go behind enemy lines by means of a magical toilet is a perfect example. Thankfully, Yates can capture emotional performances from his actors as well as he can humor.

Our three leads have never been this good. Daniel Radcliffe, in particular, continues to impress with his ability to pull off a role as iconic as Harry Potter. The emotional impact of “Deathly Hallows” is what sets it apart from the rest, and, in the end, it’s what makes up for any of the film’s shortcomings. There are at least three moments here that stand out as high points in the series, in terms of their ability to pull at your heart. Best of all, these moments never feel forced or manipulative.

While still not perfect, “Deathly Hallows” is a beautifully shot film, incredibly well acted and more than capable of earning a few tears –– a high point for the series to be sure. I just hope that with the final chapter we can return to some of the magic that made me fall for the franchise in the first place.

Beverly Cleary wrote the book on pestering little sisters. She wrote several, actually – more than a dozen dating back to the 1950s, many of them featuring one pest in particular, Ramona Quimby.

Ramona hasn’t aged much in the years between “Beezus and Ramona” in 1955 and “Ramona’s World,” which Cleary published in 1999.

She’s perpetually about 8, and a constant thorn in the side of her big sister, Beatrice, whom Ramona saddled with the nickname Beezus.

The books have been beloved for decades, which makes me wonder why it’s taken so long for pesky Ramona to make it into a movie.

More than 50 years of fans also sets the bar pretty high for filmmakers, who clearly cleared it with “Ramona and Beezus,” a charming movie newly released on DVD. (And I’m not just saying so because one of the screenwriters, Nick Pustay, is related to a reporter at The Independent).

The adults – John Corbett as dad Robert Quimby, Bridget Moynahan as mom Dorothy Quimby, Ginnifer Goodwin as Aunt Bea, and Josh Duhamel as Hobart – are perfect pawns in Ramona’s pestering plots and pranks.

But the real magic materializes inside Ramona’s vivid imagination. She dreams up danger where there is none – picturing a rocky canyon beneath her feet as she dangles from the monkeybars on the school playground.

Meanwhile, real life for Ramona and family is scary enough without the embellishments. Bills are piling up for her parents, who fear losing their home after Mr. Quimby (Corbett) loses his job.

It’s a timely plot twist with a message many families might relate to: When times get tough, families pull together.

“Ramona and Beezus” is a bright and colorful as a child whose gone wild with a set of fingerpaints.

It’ll put a smile on your face and a laugh in your heart.

Trailer time

In theaters Dec. 22, bigger-than-life comedian Jack Black brands “Gulliver’s Travels,” a book penned by Jonathan Swift in 1726, with his own style and silliness.

In the movie, a mail-room-flunkie and aspiring travel writer, Gulliver (Black) gets tossed by the Bermuda Triangle onto an island with miniature inhabitants, and starts to like the feeling of being looked up to. The film co-stars Jason Segal, Emily Blunt and Billy Connolly as itty-bitty islanders.

In July 2011, author A.A. Milne’s “Winnie the Pooh” is back on the big screen for the first time in more than 35 years – with a new story, but the same classic charm of the original 1977 Disney adaptation “The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh.”

It’s got the look of that first film – one of my favorites as a child – with the pages of Milne’s storybook coming to life.

A lot of sub-par “Pooh” films have been rushed to video in the last 30 years, but I’m banking on this one being different.

Contact Robert McCune at Robert.McCune@IndeOnline.com or call 330-775-1124.

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